


Flight Check

by edgarallanrose



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: (Moment of Harassment is NOT Jack/Bitty), AND THERE WAS ONLY ONE BED!, Alternate Universe - Flight Attendants, Awkward Jack Zimmermann, Beach Holidays, Drunkenness, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Flight Attendant Eric "Bitty" Bittle, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Minor Derek "Nursey" Nurse/WIlliam "Dex" Poindexter, Minor Larissa "Lardo" Duan/Shitty Knight, Mutual Pining, Oblivious Eric "Bitty" Bittle, Pilot Jack Zimmermann, Romantic Fluff, Sexual Harassment, Sharing a Bed, mentions of vomiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-11
Updated: 2019-11-11
Packaged: 2021-01-27 13:49:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21393226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/edgarallanrose/pseuds/edgarallanrose
Summary: Flight attendant Eric “Bitty” Bittle has been working his way up at Samwell Airlines for the past four years, and his new promotion has provided him the opportunity to work with a brand-new crew. Unfortunately for Bitty, that crew includes an incredibly handsome but equally grumpy pilot, Captain Jack Zimmermann, who seems to want nothing to do with Bitty. Even worse, Jack refuses to eat any of Bitty's baked goods. Will Bitty be able to win the captain over? Or is there another reason Jack has been avoiding Bitty?An OMGCP Big Bang 2019 Fic!
Relationships: Eric "Bitty" Bittle/Jack Zimmermann, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 200
Kudos: 653
Collections: OMGCP Big Bang 2019





	1. "I don't eat sugar."

**Author's Note:**

> Some quick acknowledgements! Thank you a million times to my amazing betas, [Maddie](https://beacon911.tumblr.com/), Lea, and Jillian. Y'all are the truest friends a gal could have, and this fic wouldn't exist without you <3 Also, big shout out to [rub-a-dubb](https://rub-a-dubb.tumblr.com/) for creating the PERFECT art for this fic! Each piece is so thoughtful and brilliant and fun and PLEASE make sure to go give her your compliments!! You can find her art masterpost on tumblr [here!](https://rub-a-dubb.tumblr.com/post/189000315369/hey-everyone-i-did-a-check-please-big-bang-with)
> 
> I hope you enjoy my first real AU for Check, Please!

“Folks, we’re startin’ our final descent into Atlanta,” Bitty said into the PA speaker. “Please fold up your tray tables and return your seats to the upright position. Our cabin crew will be around shortly to collect any remaining trash. On behalf of your Atlanta based crew, we’d like to thank you again for riding Samwell Airlines and wish you a pleasant rest of your day.”

Bitty hung up the speaker against the wall as Shruti handed him a pair of rubber gloves.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be able to master that customer service voice,” Shruti said as she shook out a trash bag. “Never mind that I’m based in Atlanta but don’t have the accent.”

“Nonsense, you’ll be great! You’ve only been listenin’ to me say the same thing over and over again for a year.” Bitty accepted a trash bag from Shruti. “Besides, you won’t really have a choice now that I’ve been promoted to a new line. You’re the lead now!”

“We’re going to miss you here on our little domestic flights.”

“Oh, I’ll still be doing mostly domestic. And it’s not as if you’ll never see me again; we still work for the same airline.”

“What’s my girlfriend going to do now that I won’t have regular access to your pies?”

“Oh, is that what this is really about?”

They both laughed as Bitty lead the way down the aisle, smiling to each row of the Boeing 737 as they slowly descended out of the sky.

\---

Working for an airline often seemed like a never-ending series of First Days. Even after being a part of Samwell Air for nearly four years, Bitty was constantly working with new crew members, not to mention having different faces on each flight. A good first impression went a long way, and he had been abusing the crew allowance of bringing food aboard flights ever since day one to pave the way.

Bitty was the first to arrive at the gate for sign-in time, forty-five minutes before the flight. He had worked with one of the other crew members before, a young flight attendant from California named Chris Chow, but otherwise, he was the newbie. He stood his luggage next to him as he adjusted the buttons of his uniform vest and the Tupperware of mini pies he was carrying in his other hand. The gate was virtually empty except for the few weary travelers who had chosen to book their 6:30 AM flight.

Bitty hadn’t been waiting long when he saw one of the smallest women he’d ever seen turn the corner in the recognizable Samwell red pencil skirt and white button-up uniform, red scarf tied smartly around her neck. Her hair was short enough that she didn’t need to pull it back.

“You must be Eric,” she said, extending a hand when she approached the gate. “I’m your lead today, Larissa. Welcome to the team.”

“Thanks, Larissa. And please, call me Bitty.”

“Bitty, huh?”

“Old college nickname. My parents only ever called me Eric when I was in trouble. Trust me, I prefer the nickname.”

“Cool, cool. Well, you won’t be the only person on this crew who prefers a nickname.”

Before Bitty could ask what she meant, he spotted Chris coming down the hall. Chris saw him at the same time and raised his hand in an excited wave.

“Bitty! Ohemgee, you’re actually here!”

“I am here!”

Chris ran to the gate, his luggage trailing behind him, until he could throw his arms around Bitty in a quick hug, who awkwardly attempted to hug him back with full hands.

“Oooh, you brought something?”

“You really thought I would come empty handed when meeting a new team?” Bitty ceremoniously lifted the lid off the Tupperware to reveal the mini pies. Larissa and Chris gave appropriately appreciative oohs and ahs.

“They’re maple pecan,” Bitty said. “Help yourself.”

“You made these?” Larissa asked, one halfway in her mouth already.

“Bitty’s, like, a master baker,” Chris said.

“Please, I’m a home baker.” Bitty had the good grace to demure though he was, of course, very pleased. “It’s just something that I enjoy doing and sharing.”

“LARDOOOOO!” A shout from behind him startled the group. A man in uniform who looked like the epitome of a 1970’s airline pilot, ‘stache, aviators, and all, was precariously balancing two cups of coffee and dragging his luggage behind him. Beside him there was another man, slightly taller, who was a dead ringer for the guys who only model being a pilot in the Sky Mall magazines. Dark hair and bright blue eyes, broad shoulders, and an expression like he could commit a murder if he didn’t finish his coffee quick enough.

“Don’t call me Lardo in front of my crew, bro.” Larissa rolled her eyes, albeit fondly, as the two men approached. “You’ll ruin my cred.”

“Your cred precedes you,” the mustached pilot said as he kissed Larissa on top of her head. “One soy latte to the BAMF of Samwell Air.”

“You are forgiven,” Larissa said, accepting her coffee.

“Bitty brought pie!” Chowder said, mouth full.

“Bitty?” Both the pilots turned to look at him. Bitty plastered on a smiled.

“Eric Bittle. I just prefer to go by Bitty. I’m so excited to join your team!”

“No way. I’m First Officer B. Knight, but I just go by my nickname, too. You can call me Shitty.”

Bitty blinked. “I…say that again?”

“You heard him right,” Larissa sighed.

“Uncle Shitty, if you like,” Shitty said, reaching for a pie. “Of course, you can’t use the nickname around passengers.”

“Of course.”

“Holy fuck,” Shitty said as he took his first bite. “Is this maple pecan?”

“It sure is.”

“Lards, can we keep him?”

“Oh yeah, he’s ours now.”

Bitty beamed. He tried to subtly push the box towards the other pilot, who had thus far remained silent, but he didn’t seem to be paying any attention.

“You gonna introduce yourself sometime today, Captain?” Shitty said, nudging the man in the ribs. He just stared. Good lord, _those eyes_. Bitty gave him a nervous smile.

“Jack Zimmermann,” he said, offering a hand. Bitty had to clumsily readjust his hold on the pies in order to shake it. “Welcome aboard, Bittle.”

“Bitty,” he gently corrected.

Jack grunted, taking a sip of his coffee.

“Would you care for a pie, Captain Zimmermann?”

“I don’t eat sugar,” he said. “I need protein, especially in the morning.”

Jack might as well have smacked Bitty across the face. Bitty hoped it wasn’t too obvious how much the comment upset him, but he did purse his lips and shut the Tupperware with a snap.

“Dude, the correct answer is ‘no thank you,’” Shitty said with an exasperated sigh. “Don’t pay attention to him, Bitty. He’s always like this in the morning.”

“And the afternoon, and the evening,” Larissa mumbled into her coffee.

“I can hear you, you know.”

“Well, more pies for us!” Chris said quickly.

“C’mon, it’s time for pre-flight checks.” Jack walked away, speaking briefly to the gate agent before heading through the doorway.

“Is he really always like that?” Bitty asked quietly.

“Not always,” Larissa said, picking up her things and leading them over to the doorway. “Don’t worry too much about it. He’s very professional, just slightly lacking in emotional intelligence.”

“He’s French Canadian,” Shitty added. “Maybe it’s a cultural thing.”

“I think it’s just a Jack thing.”

“They used to call him Autopilot in flight school. ‘Cause he’s, ya know, kinda robot-like.”

“Accurate, if a bit mean,” Larissa said.

“Well _I_ never called him that,” Shitty said. “Jack is my best bro. I’ve been showering him with affection for years, and I think it’s starting to get through to him.”

“Sure, it is, Shits,” Lardo said, dropping her luggage at the end of the jet bridge before standing on her toes to kiss Shitty on the cheek. “Now get on the tarmac and do your damn job.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Shitty gave all of them a little salute before descending the steps outside to do the pre-flight checks.

“So, is Shitty your…?” Bitty trailed off, not sure what term would be appropriate since Larissa was still a new coworker, and technically his superior.

“He’s just Shitty,” she said shortly. She sat down in one of the first class seats, fetching the uniform heels out of her tote bag to replace the flats currently on her feet. “Chris, can you handle the snack carts and beverage service? And Bitty, you check the aisles, please. I’ll do the rest of the checklist.”

They stowed their own luggage, then Bitty and Chowder headed toward the tail end.

“Shitty and Larissa are literally engaged,” Chris said to Bitty with a small laugh. “They’re just—”

“Like that?”

“Basically, yeah.”

“Seems like that’s the case for everyone around here.”

“Bitty? Does that make me your favorite?”

“Chris,” Bitty said, stopping to turn and give Chris a very serious look, “you will always be my favorite.”

Bitty heard a small, whispered “Yes!” as he turned around to continue the seat checks.

\---

“I just don’t understand what he wants from me,” Bitty complained, leaning against the cockpit door. It was three weeks into working the new line and Bitty had already made friends with some other regular crew members. They were currently cruising at 35,000 feet on autopilot, which gave Bitty the perfect opportunity to bitch to another pair of pilots, Adam Birkholtz and Justin Oulransi.

“I’ve flown with Jack before,” Justin said. “He definitely knows what he’s doing, but he can be…intense.”

“I know what you mean,” Adam nodded.

“I’m good at what I do, I’m professional, I show up on time, go out of my way to be nice, but there’s no pleasin’ him!” Bitty crossed his arms and huffed. “He’s never so much as cracked a smile.”

“I have legitimately never seen Jack smile.”

“Bruh, me neither.”

“Well, that makes me feel a little better. I guess.”

The floor shook as the plane hit some minor turbulence, and both pilots turned back to check their monitors.

“Oh, don’t worry, that’s probably just God punishing me for being impolite and talking behind someone’s back,” Bitty said.

“You’ll find a way to win Jack over, Bits,” Adam said, readjusting his headset as the plane shook again. Bitty steadied himself against the wall.

“Yeah, if anyone can, it’s you.”

“Now get to your jump seat. I’ve gotta turn the fasten seatbelt sign back on.”

“And maybe make sure Will and Derek haven’t killed each other yet? I don’t know why those two keep getting scheduled together.”

“Oh, I’m sure they’re fine,” Bitty said, but he did leave the cockpit as Adam started the overhead announcement for the turbulence.

Bitty eyed over the passengers to make sure there were no nervous flyers having a panic attack as he made his way to the jump seat at the tail end of the plane. He found Will already sitting in the jump seat in the exit row.

“Wait, Bitty,” Will called out as he passed. “Take the seat by me. Derek can take the one in the back.”

“Okay, why?”

Will crossed his arms and pouted. “I just don’t want to sit by him. That’s all.”

Bitty sighed, but took the seat next to him, strapping himself in just as a big wave of turbulent air hit the plane. There was some small exclamation from passengers, but nothing that sounded like an emergency.

“What are you arguing about now?”

“You know how I told you that I’ve been in training to become a pilot?”

“I do.”

“So now Derek is telling me that he’s gonna do that, too.”

Bitty raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “And?”

“I mean, I was doing it first!”

“William. How old are you?”

“Twenty-three.” Will frowned, then looked down, embarrassed. “Oh. I see.”

“What’s wrong with both of you going into the same profession? Especially seeing as you already work together.”

“I don’t know. It was mine and now I have to share it with him. I’m a middle child. I probably have a complex or something. But I also feel like he’s doing it on purpose to annoy me.”

“Do you really think Derek would spend all that money on flight school just to get a rise out of you?”

“You don’t know him like I do, Bitty,” Will said darkly.

Bitty rolled his eyes and waited for the turbulence to pass.

\---

Bitty had always made friends using two unshakable methods: unrelenting kindness and baked goods. Jack was susceptible to neither. But Bitty took what Justin and Adam said to heart – if anyone could do it, he could. He wasn’t giving up on him just yet.

It was another early morning flight, up at 3 to be at the gate by 4:45. The rest of the crew had already boarded, so Bitty quickly stowed his items and helped with the pre-flight checks. Moments before the passengers began boarding, Bitty knocked on the cockpit door before peeking in. It was just Jack inside, who removed his headset upon seeing Bitty.

“Something I can help you with, Bittle?”

“Are you flying first this morning?”

“No, Shitty is up first.”

“Perfect.” Bitty fully entered the room, holding out an open container. “You’ll have time for these then.”

Jack took the container, giving a quizzical look at the contents and then back up at Bitty.

“Crustless quiche,” Bitty explained. “It’s turkey sausage and spinach. Low carb, low fat. Extra protein. No sugar.”

Jack continued to stare at them as if they were a puzzle that would miraculously come together at any moment. “You made these for the crew?”

“No, Jack, I made them for you.”

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“I know I didn’t. But I wanted to. I feel bad you can never take part in the treats I bring, so I made you something special.”

“Oh.” Jack’s voice was soft in a way Bitty had never heard before. “Should I try one?”

“I think I’ll die if you don’t.”

Jack took a careful bite, then widened his eyes, nodding at Bitty.

“Good?”

“Really good,” Jack said, already taking another bite. Bitty glowed.

“Oh, thank goodness. Savory has never been my strong suit, but I knew I had to find some way to get you to like me.”

Jack paused mid-chew. “You think I don’t like you?”

“I just mean that…” Bitty blanched. “I’m sorry I shouldn’t have said that. I’m not bribing you, or anything! You just always seem so grumpy and – oh lord, I am really messing this up.”

“Why wouldn’t I like you?”

“I don’t know, why do you always look at me like I’m gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe?”

Bitty crossed his arms, staring outside the front window at the tarmac as they both kept in uncomfortable silence. Moomaw would have a heart attack if she ever heard Bitty speak the way he had just spoken to Jack. Bitty was raised to always be gracious, always be polite, but every time he and Jack were in the same room, he started to sweat under his collar and his skin itched and all the air got sucked out of his lungs. Bitty wasn’t sure why. Jack had never done anything except give him disparaging looks. And not eat his pies.

“Bittle,” Jack said slowly, “I think we maybe got off on the wrong foot.”

“Good morning, passengers!” Larissa’s customer service voice, devoid of its usual vocal fry, rang from outside the door. “Welcome aboard!”

“I should go,” Bitty said.

“Well, wait –”

“Alright,” Shitty said, sliding the door open, “everything is up and running and raring to – oh, yo, Bits! You brought us snacks?”

“He brought _me_ snacks,” Jack said, then with a side glance at Bitty, “apparently.”

Bitty turned and left the cockpit, closing the door behind him as he rushed past Larissa towards his station at the middle of the plane. First class was already boarding, Chris lifting a bag above his head into overhead storage as Bitty ducked under his arms to get past him, face burning.

“Bitty?” Chris asked, but Bitty just kept walking.

Bitty had managed to make a complete and utter fool of himself, and it wasn’t even 6 AM yet.

Their flight to Phoenix took off without a hitch. It was an easy day, only two legs with an overnight layover in Seattle, then three short legs around the west coast the following day before returning to Atlanta. About midway through the flight, Larissa came and found Bitty by the beverage station.

“Bitty,” she said, “we’ve got a puker in A27.”

“Oh no,” Bitty grimaced. “Did any get on the carpet?”

“I don’t think so, though I’ll contact the cleaning crew when we land. I got a bag to him in time, but I don’t think it’ll be enough. I need you to check on him. I don’t do vomit.”

“I mean, I don’t love vomit either.”

“No, Bitty, you don’t understand. I’m an empathetic puker. This is something I unfortunately learned about myself when I lived in a frat in college.”

“You lived in a frat?”

“Story for another time. Bottom line, if I see or hear him start to blow chunks, it’s gonna set me off too. And then where will we be?”

“Alright, okay.” Bitty raised his hands in defeat. “I’ll check on him.”

Bitty grabbed gloves, a trash bag, more barf bags, and ginger ale. The man in A27 was looking extremely green. A woman next to him, probably a girlfriend, was rubbing his back while he sat slumped forward in his seat.

“How are things over here, folks?” Bitty asked, kneeling in the aisle.

“I gave him a Dramamine before we took off,” the woman said. “Usually that helps.”

“I don’t fly well,” the man said, his voice shaky. “I’m sorry.”

“Just motion sickness?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, take the ginger ale, and go ahead and toss your used bag in here. I’ve got more bags for you. It was supposed to be a smooth flight, but I can check with our pilots if you’d like.”

“We’d appreciate that,” the woman said. “Thank you.”

Bitty stopped at the phone in the exit aisle and phoned the cockpit, and Shitty gave him the go ahead to stop in. Then he traveled up the aisle, past Chris who was assigned to the first class cabin that morning.

“Puker?” Chris asked, upon seeing the trash bag in Bitty’s hand.

“Mhmm. How’re things up here?”

“The usual. It’s not even 8am and these people have me pouring doubles.”

“That sounds about right.”

Bitty lightly knocked on the cockpit door and slid it open.

“Hey, boys, what are we looking at turbulence-wise for the remainder?”

“Puker?” Shitty asked, scrunching his nose.

“How’d you guess?”

“Well, it’s supposed to be clear all the way there, maybe a little bumpy as we descend. But I can give as much advanced warning as I can if that helps.”

“That would be great, Shitty. Thank you.”

“By the way, Bits,” Shitty said as he turned to leave. “You’re gonna have to make those mini quiches again. Jack wouldn’t let me have any.”

Bitty looked over to see a sheepish look on Jack’s face, who passed him the empty container that had once held the quiches.

“I was hungry,” Jack said defensively. “And…they were really good.”

“Oh, no worries! Another order of quiches can definitely be arranged.”

Not even the next several hours of being on vomit duty could bring Bitty down from his high. Jack had eaten all his quiche.

Jack was going to like him.

They were all exhausted after landing, having been up before the crack of dawn, but they agreed to meet up again in an hour or so after they checked into the hotel, napped and showered. Even though Bitty had been working this line for nearly a month, he hadn’t been on many layovers that had allowed much more than crashing into a bed then waking up the next morning to do it all over again. He was looking forward to actually spending time with his crew.

Seattle was beautiful, the overcast coolness a welcome reprieve from the Atlanta heat. Bitty would be able to wear the black skinny jeans and jean jacket that he hardly ever had the appropriate weather to wear at home. Shitty sent out a group text to everybody saying to meet in the lobby so they could walk together to Pike Place Market.

“Look who I managed to drag along!” Shitty said as he stepped off the elevator, literally physically dragging Jack behind him.

“C’mon, Shits,” Jack said. “It’s not like I never go out on layovers.”

“The last time we did anything on a layover was the Mets game like an actual age ago.”

While they continued to banter, Bitty realized he had never seen Jack out of uniform before. It was true that even when they went out for dinner or just a drink, Jack usually chose to stay in the hotel. He was just in jeans, a raglan tee and baseball cap.

He looked incredible. Just unfairly attractive. It was absurd.

They all needed a caffeine fix first. They wandered through the marketplace, eyeing the shops and restaurants, Bitty stopping at nearly every bakery window. They all took a selfie in front of the original Starbucks just for grins but agreed they should probably get their coffee from a place that they couldn’t visit anywhere else. Besides, the line to get inside was absolutely ridiculous.

Eventually, they found a charming local café that served pastries and coffee.

“I’ll take the stevia-sweetened cinnamon vanilla latte, iced, with almond milk and a cinnamon roll please,” Bitty told the barista.

“Would you like the cinnamon roll warmed up?”

“Oh, yes please. As if there’s any other way to have it!”

“My feelings exactly.” The barista smiled at Bitty. He looked like the epitome of a hipster coffee shop employee, with a nose ring and beard, tattoos up both arms. The tips of his hair were dyed purple. “I can bring it over to your table, just give it a couple minutes.” Jack approached the register, staring at the menu on the wall behind the barista like it physically pained him. “What can I get for you?”

“Do you have, uh, coffee?”

“Um. Sure we do. All kinds.”

“No, I mean, not any of these…concoctions. Just a black, regular coffee.”

“You got it. Would you be interested in trying our cold brew?”

“I don’t know what that means, but I do want it hot.”

“Okay, we have our house blend, the Jamaican blend, Blonde roast, Medium roast, or—”

“Please,” Jack said. “Just a cup of coffee.”

“Jack, you really should get out more if you don’t know what a cold brew is,” Larissa said as they all took a seat at a cozy corner table.

“I’ve traveled all over the world. I fly thousands of miles a week. I don’t think I could handle being more out than I already am.”

“But Jackie, you’ve gotta experience the people, the culture,” Shitty said, putting an arm around Jack’s shoulders. “You’ve gotta get on Twitter, look at the memes, get stoned and watch Vine compilations on Youtube for indeterminate amounts of time.”

“Okay, I’m like, pretty with it, but I’ve never done that last thing,” Chris said.

“You’re missing out, my friend.”

“Okay,” the barista said, arriving at their table with an armful of plates. “We have two scones, a slice of banana bread and a cinnamon roll.”

“Thank you,” Bitty said. “This looks delightful.”

“So, are you visiting, seeing the sights?” the barista asked, outwardly addressing the entire table, but his hand rested on the back of Bitty’s chair, and he looked only at him, so Bitty answered.

“We’re just here for the night,” Bitty said. “We work for an airline.”

“Cool, very cool. Fly into Seattle often?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Bitty said, looking at the rest of the table for assistance. Shitty and Larissa were hiding smiles behind their scones. Chris was beaming, and Jack was frowning into his coffee. “It’s my first time here.”

“Yes,” Chris chimed in. “We do regular flights into Seattle, usually with a layover.”

“Well, you’ll have to keep coming back,” he said. “We have a lot of seasonal offerings, and we change the menu every week.”

“Oh! Sounds wonderful.”

“I’ll make sure we always have something sweet for you.” He winked. “Enjoy your cinnamon roll.”

The barista walked away as Jack choked on his coffee.

“We’ve talked about this, Jack,” Shitty said, smacking him on the back. Jack brushed him off. “You can’t inhale liquids.”

“Ohemgee, Bits,” Chris said, in probably what he thought was an excited whisper, but his voice was high pitched enough to carry. “That guy was _totes_ into you.”

“I think he was just being nice.”

“He didn’t offer me anything sweet,” Larissa pointed out.

“Lards, babe, I don’t think you’re his type.”

“Nor is he mine,” Bitty said. “He looks like he’s nineteen. Besides, it was probably just a customer service – oh.”

“What?”

Bitty held up the napkin that was slipped under his plate. “He gave me his number. His name is Travis, apparently.”

“Told yoooou!” Chris sang.

“Y’all calm down,” Bitty laughed. “I’m not going to text him.”

“Why not?” Shitty said. “You’ve got a whole evening free!”

“That’s not…I’m not like that,” Bitty said, starting to blush and taking a bite of the cinnamon roll so he could avoid a full answer. “And besides, like I said, he’s not my type.”

“Okay then.” Larissa folded her hands under her chin. “So, who is your type?”

“I’d rather not say.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t want you setting me up with anyone!”

“Who says I would?” Larissa said, insulted in a way that indicated that’s exactly what she would do.

“You could have a boy in every state if you wanted, Bits,” Shitty said. “I don’t know if you know this, but you are one smokin’ hot mother fucker.”

“Oh, stop!”

“It’s true! If I wasn’t promised to the bad ass beside me, I’d consider switching teams. Anyone with eyes can see that you’re sexy AF. Right, Jack?”

“I don’t know what ‘AF’ means,” Jack grunted.

Shitty rolled his eyes. “Just hopeless.”

Bitty realized Jack looked almost as uneasy as he was with the line of conversation. His arms were crossed, hat pulled down low. His coffee was nearly empty already because he had been using it as an excuse not to contribute to the conversation.

It occurred to Bitty that Jack might not have been aware he was gay. It wasn’t exactly something he hid from his coworkers. The airline as a company was very inclusive, one of the reasons Bitty had applied to them in the first place, and he had been out since college. It often didn’t come up in conversation and traveling all the time didn’t exactly allow him time to date. Bitty used to play sports, but it had been a long time since he had considered himself to be “straight passing,” whatever that meant anyway. But occasionally, there was a guy like Jack, a clueless hetero guy, who couldn’t pick up cues. Bitty’s heart sank to think that something like his sexuality might make Jack uncomfortable.

“We all know Jack’s type,” Larissa said. “The great blue beyond, married to the job!”

“Well, that and blondes,” Jack said.

The table fell silent.

“Was that a joke?” Chris asked. “Hahaha, oh my god! It was!”

“Jack just told a joke!” Shitty stood up and waved his arms above his head. “ATTENTION GOOD PEOPLE OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON! MY BEST FRIEND, JACK LAURENT ZIMMERMANN, JUST TOLD A JOKE!”

“Shits,” Jack groaned.

Most of the customers uncomfortably laughed or just ignored them, though one table nearby did give some polite applause.

“I’m so proud of you, man,” Shits said, sitting back down and wiping a tear from his eye. “My little Jack, all grown up.”

“You are ridiculous.”

“You’re a good influence on him, Bits.”

“Me?” Bitty asked.

“Yup. Whatever you slipped into those quiches apparently can open up even the most emotionally constipated of men.”

“Hey!” Jack protested.

“Um. There was some cumin?”

The whole table fell into fits of laughter, Jack included. Jack even shared a smile with Bitty, and Bitty’s stomach swooped.

A joke _and_ a smile? Bitty had never hoped for such progress in this short a time period.

The following day was a full schedule, so none of them ended up staying out late. Sometimes Bitty preferred days of back to back flights. There was more stress involved, sure, but without extended layovers the time went by quickly.

However, by the end of the day, Bitty was living on coffee and a prayer. Their flight back to Atlanta was a redeye from LAX. During the beverage service, Bitty found himself daydreaming about his pillow while he waited for the fizz in the diet coke he poured to go down. One of the great mysteries of the world: why did diet coke take longer than any other soda for fizz to go away while 35,000 feet in the air? What was it about the change in air pressure that made one of the most commonly requested drinks so irritating to serve? Fascinating, really.

Lord, Bitty was tired.

There was a baby in the back row that had been screaming and crying the whole flight. Her mama, who was traveling alone, had been apologetically walking up and down the aisle trying to calm her down, without much success. When the fasten seat belt sign came back on Bitty had to ask her to take her seat again. She looked at Bitty, her eyes red and puffy.

“We’ve been flying for the last sixteen hours. Neither of us have had barely any sleep. If I can just keep walking her—”

“Ma’am, you do have to take your seat. But, if it’s alright with you, I can hold your baby for a little while? Maybe you could get some rest.”

“Oh, I couldn’t ask you to do that.”

“You’re not askin’, I’m offerin’. I’ve gotta walk the aisles anyway, and babies love me.”

She handed off the fussy baby to Bitty, who paused whining for a moment to look up at him with big, brown eyes.

“What’s her name?”

“Viviane.”

“Hi, Viviane.” Viviane squirmed for a moment in Bitty’s arms, but she was already settling down. “Go ahead and sit down, Mama, I’ll bring her back to you soon.”

“Bless you,” she said, squeezing Bitty’s shoulder before returning to her seat.

Bitty walked the length of the aisle twice, rocking Viviane in his arms before she started to doze off. The plane was mostly quiet, with half the passengers asleep, but Bitty was still able to answer people calling for the attendants with a baby in one arm. Bitty was fixing a drink for a passenger at the front of the plane, Viviane now fully asleep dead weight, when Jack exited the lavatory and saw him.

“You training a new crew member?” he asked, giving a little smile to the sleeping baby.

“Oh, yes, she’ll be ready to present the safety demonstration on her own in no time.”

“Want me to hold her so you can use two hands to open those cans?”

“If you don’t mind, that’d be helpful. Just be careful not to wake her.”

Bitty slowly and carefully transferred Viviane to Jack’s arms. Jack pulled her close to his chest and she immediately snuggled against his neck, fast asleep.

“Lord, she’s awfully sweet,” Bitty said, stretching out his arms, “but for a little thing she gets heavier than you’d think.”

“I believe it. How’d you end up on babysitting duty?”

“First of all, I love babysitting. But her poor mama was so exhausted, I had to do something.”

“That’s very nice of you, Bittle.”

“Just doing my job, Captain Zimmermann.”

“A little above and beyond, actually.”

“Well.” Bitty blushed. This was probably the longest conversation he and Jack had ever had, one on one. “Are you okay to hold her two more seconds while I drop these drinks off?”

“Sure, go ahead.”

Bitty quickly brought the drinks to the two passengers who requested them and walked back to Jack. Jack had started pacing the small area in front of the cockpit, mumbling something to the baby as he swayed her in his arms. Bitty felt a pang in his chest, an ache he’d never felt before.

“I should probably bring her back to her mama,” Bitty said, placing a hand on Jack’s arm.

“Oh. Yeah.”

Jack slowly placed Viviane back with Bitty. She started to blink her eyes open, making a distressed noise as both Bitty and Jack froze. But then she just stretched her little arms and legs and fell back asleep against Bitty’s chest.

“Kids like you, eh?”

“They tend to. It’s a gift.”

“Bittle. I do like you. You’re an asset to the crew, and I’m glad to work with you. I’m sorry that we got off to a bad start.”

“Oh, Jack, you don’t have to—”

“No, let me…um. I know I can come off kind of gruff. Intense. Most people don’t take it personally. That’s not an excuse, I just – I’m sorry, I guess I’m bad at this, too.”

“It’s alright, Jack. I should probably take some time to examine why my desperate need for validation is so closely tied to baked goods, but, I mean, who has time to unpack all that?”

“Haha. Well, I want to make it up to you. How would you like to be a part of our Cancun crew next week? It’s a forty-two-hour layover, Labor Day weekend.”

“Really? You can do that?” Bitty was forced to keep his volume at an excited whisper because of the baby, but inside he was jumping up and down.

“It’s the least I can do.”

“Jack! I would love that, thank you!”

“Don’t mention it.” Then Jack winked, honest to goodness _winked_. “See you on the ground, Bittle.”


	2. “Does your mother know you go out in shorts that short?”

The morning of the Cancun trip, everyone was in high spirits. Bitty had been enthusiastically sorting through his collection of short shorts for days in preparation for the trip. Bitty hadn’t worked another flight with Jack in the week beforehand, so he got his number from Shitty to text him another thank you. Jack had replied with a smiley face emoji, followed by another text that said, “I just learned how to use emoijs.”

“Did you hear the good news?” Chris asked as he and Bitty boarded the jet bridge together.

“No, what?”

“Derek and Will’s crew are going to be in Cancun at the same time as us!”

“Oh! Justin and Adam too?”

“Yup! It’s gonna be lit!”

The plane was full of college students, families, and other vacationing passengers, clearly as ready as the crew to get the party started as soon as possible. Bitty had never seen so many alcohol sales in all his days as a flight attendant.

“Alright, brahs,” Shitty said as they all finally disembarked the plane together, “we’ve got about an hour before the other Samwell crew gets here, so let’s drop our shit off at the hotel, nap or whatever, then we are gonna get BLACK OUT, my dudes!”

The crew took the shuttle to the hotel, a beachside resort that was hardly the nicest option available but still a mile above the usual industrial, boxy places right off the interstate. The lobby had a giant aquarium in the center and there was a beautiful, smiling hostess passing out free cocktails. Bitty had no idea what was in them, but they were sweet and tropical and dangerous.

They all ended up on the fifth floor, dispersing to their respective rooms as they got off the elevator. Bitty didn’t realize anything was wrong until him and Jack both stopped at the same room.

“Jack? Um, did you…want something?”

“Just to get into my room, Bittle.”

“What does your room card say?”

Jack frowned, looking down at the little card that held his room key. “Room 515.”

“So does mine.”

“Front desk must have made a mix up, wrote it incorrectly.” Jack sighed. “It’s happened before. We can see if one of these keys doesn’t work, then we’ll know who has a different room.”

Jack and Bitty both took turns unlocking the door with their key cards. Both were able to activate the lock and open the door.

“Well, we can at least drop our luggage in here,” Bitty said, “then we can go back down to the desk together and sort it all out.”

As Bitty arranged his suitcase on the luggage rack, he couldn’t help but notice that neither him nor Jack wanted to mention that this room had only one bed.

They rode the elevator back down in silence. Bitty hung back as Jack spoke to the woman at the front desk, but Bitty was still able to pick up the gist of the conversation. There must have been a booking error since Bitty was added on to the trip late, they didn’t have any more rooms available because it was a holiday weekend, they would check to see if they had a rollaway bed, but they couldn’t guarantee anything. Jack looked like he was about to have a full-blown panic attack.

“Jack, it’ll be fine,” Bitty said, leading him away by the arm. “We can see if anybody else got a double and would be willing to switch with us. Or I bet Chris wouldn’t mind sharing with me instead.”

“I’m not gonna kick you out of the room, Bittle.”

“I didn’t say you would. I’m just saying I’m sure we can arrange something that works for everybody.”

Bitty didn’t want to admit how much he was secretly freaking out as well. It shouldn’t matter. It wasn’t typical but he had shared rooms, if not exactly beds, with other crew members before. But he and Jack had only just recently become friendly, and Bitty did not need for things to become awkward. Well, more awkward than usual.

Once they were back in the room, Bitty texted the group chat while Jack took a shower. Everyone else had also been given single rooms, and Shitty and Larissa had been put together at their request. Chris did offer to share with Bitty if the rollaway bed didn’t pan out, and Bitty said they could figure it out later that night.

Jack exited the bathroom then, wearing only a pair of shorts, his hair tousled from a quick towel dry.

“Forgot my shirt,” Jack mumbled, digging around in his suitcase, his shorts hugging his ass and thighs as he bent down.

Bitty immediately had to busy himself on his phone to keep himself from staring. He already knew Jack was attractive, anyone with sense in their brains knew that. Even under the pilot uniform, he could tell he was in good shape. But nothing could have prepared Bitty for the fact that Jack was, well, _ripped_.

The Lord was testing him, Bitty realized. The Lord was testing him, and he was being set up to fail.

Bitty himself showered soon after, sloughing off all the airplane grime and moisturizing his dried-out skin. Then he slipped on a tank top and shorts and styled his hair, rubbing a little product through the strands with his fingers. He hadn’t lied to Shitty before, he didn’t tend to date (or do anything else) over layovers, but it never hurt to look nice when he went out. He wasn’t above a little flirting and meeting new people.

By then, the other Samwell crew had arrived and were ready to go in the lobby.

“Dayuuuum, Bits!” Adam shouted, turning the heads of several annoyed hotel patrons. “Does your mother know you go out in shorts that short?”

“Thankfully, my mama hasn’t figured out Instagram yet, so no.”

The hotel was located on the main strip, so they walked along the waterfront until they found a restaurant that was able to seat all of them. The sun hadn’t even gone down yet and the streets were filled with excitement and music. The backdrop of the ocean sparkled against young people dancing and couples kissing. The sound of waves breaking was a constant rhythm beneath overlapping echoes of laughter and singing, food vendors calling out from their street stalls. Bitty was overwhelmed by the sheer joy of it all.

The energy was infectious. Not even Will and Derek were fighting. The voices at their table got steadily louder proportionate to the number of margaritas they ordered. A man on stilts came by their table and offered to make them balloon art. Jack and Will passed, but everyone else got something silly. He even made a balloon hat shaped like a penis for Shitty.

After that, it was easy just to walk to the next bar or club. Bitty could barely even remember paying for anything; it seemed that drinks just appeared in his hand. At one bar, there was a karaoke contest and Will, Derek, and Chris sang a drunken rendition of Smash Mouth’s “All Star” while Bitty filmed them for his Instagram story (and future blackmail). During a lull in the singing, Bitty found himself in conversation with a smiley, tipsy Jack Zimmermann.

“Did I ever tell you about the time that Shits and I had to make an emergency landing?” Jack asked, then tipped his head back to swallow the last dregs of his beer, exposing the long, pale column of his neck. Bitty practically salivated.

“No! How scary, what happened?”

“Well, there wasn’t anything wrong with the plane, that’s the good part. But a woman went into labor two hours into a six-hour flight.”

“Oh, my goodness! Can you imagine?”

“Yeah, she wasn’t supposed to be due for another three weeks. As soon as the crew told us what was going on, we immediately changed course, but that baby didn’t want to wait. We had to deliver it midflight.”

“What!”

“Well, I say ‘we,’ but luckily there was a doctor and two nurses on board that were able to direct us with what they needed. Half hour before we landed, she gave birth. I gave the husband my swiss army knife to cut the umbilical cord, since, ya know, passengers can’t bring that kind of stuff on board. They had an ambulance waiting for them on the tarmac, but both the mother and baby were fine. A healthy baby boy, they told us later. The parents sent us a card, thanking us.”

“Wow, Jack. That’s incredible.”

“Yeah, it was really something. Definitely stressful. But it’s a good story, eh?”

Jack winked again, as if the first time he had winked at Bitty hadn’t been devastating enough, and he offered to get Bitty another drink.

It was then, as Jack turned back to smile at Bitty, that Bitty realized exactly how far gone he was on this boy.

Bitty was in Mexico, drunk, and had a crush on the handsomest and straightest man he had ever met.

When Jack handed him his fresh drink, he downed it in less than five minutes.

The rest of the night went by in a bit of a blur. All the bars and nightclubs blended into one. At some point they were all doing tequila body shots off Adam; even Jack participated in that, licking a line of salt straight off Adam’s chest. Then Will saved Derek from a near-death experience of tumbling over a railing onto the crowded dance floor below. Larissa crushed a man so hard at beer pong that he actually cried. Bitty may or may not have posted a video to his story that only consisted of him zooming in on Jack’s ass using the heart filter.

It was well past two in the morning when they wandered into the loudest club yet, the colored lights strobing against the walls and bass pumping so deep it rattled your teeth. Bitty knew he was starting to get messy drunk, so he skipped the bar and headed straight for the dance floor, hoping to sweat out all the alcohol and sober up. That was how that worked, right? Larissa and Shitty were somewhere dancing nearby. Jack was talking to Chris back near the entrance while Derek and Will chatted with a group of college students. Justin and Adam started off dancing with Bitty, taking turns spinning him around and then letting Bitty teach them how to twerk properly. Then two girls came to dance by them, clearly trying to get their attention.

“Go dance with them,” Bitty shouted over the music. “Buy them a drink! They’re cute, they like you!”

“You sure?” Justin asked.

“I just want to keep dancing. I’m fine! Go!”

Justin gave Bitty a little mock salute as him and Adam introduced themselves to the girls, moving further away on the dance floor.

Sweat soaked the collar of Bitty’s tank top and stuck uncomfortably to his back. Each flashing light gave him an echoing throb behind his eyes, so he closed them, standing in place and just swaying to the music. Then he felt another body press against him from behind.

“Adam?” He opened his eyes and the room spun. “Justin?”

Bitty turned around to find a total stranger dancing next to him. He was good looking, tall with over-tanned tourist skin and dark hair. Dark like he dyed it to cover up some gray. He smiled at Bitty, his teeth perfectly straight. He smelled like sour tequila and stale cigarettes.

“Hey,” he said. “You’re hot.”

“Thank you, sir,” Bitty slurred, more stumbling against him than dancing against him, but the guy took that as an invitation to grab Bitty around the waist.

“I love little twinks like you.”

Bitty wasn’t sure what to say to that. He supposed it was a compliment, but he didn’t like that word, especially from strangers who didn’t know him. He just wanted to dance. He turned back around in the guy’s arms, swiveling his hips and rolling his body to the beat. His head lolled back against the guy’s chest, closing his eyes again. The guy’s hands were everywhere, down his arms and sliding over his chest, pushing under his shirt. The floor was swaying underneath him. God, why wouldn’t the room stop spinning?

_Are we on the ocean right now? _Bitty hazily thought. _Is this what the ocean feels like?_

Then he felt the guy’s fingers dip beneath the waistband of his shorts.

“No,” Bitty groaned, brushing his hand away.

But the guy just brought his hand right back. It was loud, _so loud_, maybe the guy didn’t hear?

“No,” Bitty said, a little more forcefully. “I don’t want that.”

Then the guy gripped Bitty by the hips, tugging him back so his ass was pressed right against this stranger’s hard-on. Bitty struggled to pull away, but he started to stumble and fall. The guy caught him around the middle and just held him tighter.

“No! Stop it, no!”

“Hey! He said no!”

Suddenly the guy was being yanked off Bitty and shoved a couple feet across the floor. Bitty fell hard, landing awkwardly on his knees. A hand was placed in front of him – to help him up, Bitty realized as he took the hand. He looked at the person attached to the hand and it was Jack, sweet Jack, placing a strong arm around him to keep him steady.

“Sorry, dude,” the tourist guy spat. “Didn’t realize he was here with his boyfriend, the way he was dancing.”

“That shouldn’t matter. He still said no.”

“You just let him dance on people like that? Your boyfriend’s a fucking slut.”

“Talk shit about him one more time, I swear I’ll—”

“Jack,” Bitty mumbled. Everyone was being too loud. Bitty’s face was wet and he couldn’t remember when he had started crying. “I wanna go home.”

“Okay,” Jack said, impossibly soft. It was a wonder Bitty could hear him at all. But a small circle had formed around them in the crowd when the altercation had started; a lot of the dancing had stopped. Just then Shitty and Larissa pushed through the group of onlookers.

“Out of the way, that’s our friend!” Shitty shouted. “Jack, what’s going on? Is Bitty okay?”

“M’okay,” Bitty said. “Jus’ wanna leave.”

“I’m taking him back to the hotel,” Jack said.

“Do you want us to come?”

“No, it’s alright. I’ve got him.”

“Jack has me,” Bitty sighed, genuinely feeling it, and sinking deep into Jack’s hold on him. And Jack did have him. Jack was so strong, so brave. Jack was intense, but professional. Awkward, but nice. Jack delivered a baby once. _Jack, Jack, Jack._

“Just make sure everyone else gets back okay,” Jack said. “I’ll text you.”

And with that, Bitty was half-walked, half-carried out of the club and back to the hotel.

\---

The next morning Bitty woke up underneath the covers of the hotel bed, facing a bottle of opened Gatorade and a few tablets of ibuprofen that had been left out on the end table. Bitty was relieved to find that he was still in his clothes from the night before, though someone had removed his shoes. The blankets next to him were undisturbed, but it was definitely the room Bitty had originally checked into, with the one bed. Where had Jack slept?

God, _Jack_.

Bitty shoved his face into the pillow and groaned. Some vague memories from the night before started to resurface as Bitty sipped the Gatorade and took the ibuprofen.

Jack had kept his arms around Bitty the whole walk back to the hotel. And Bitty had made it right up until they entered the room before he had to run to the toilet, falling to his knees and emptying the contents of his stomach. Jack had been there, though he had asked him to leave. He had rubbed Bitty’s back. Pressed a cold washcloth against his forehead. When he was done, he handed him a cup of water so he could rinse out his mouth.

“I don’t want you to see me like this,” Bitty had weakly complained.

“You’re sick,” Jack said. “Let me take care of you.”

The next thing Bitty remembered was being tucked into bed, carefully rolled onto his side.

“That guy thought you were my boyfriend,” Bitty had mumbled, somewhere between awake and asleep.

“That guy was an asshole.”

“You didn’t say you weren’t.”

Jack was quiet for so long Bitty thought he wasn’t going to say anything. But then he whispered, “I didn’t really think about it. I was worried about you.”

“You’re nice, Jack. I like you. You’d be a great boyfriend.”

After that, Bitty must have fallen asleep. He rolled onto his back, staring at the ceiling. The blackout curtains were still drawn, so Bitty had no idea what time it was. He was about to get up to search for his phone when the door to the room opened.

“Bittle?” Jack said. “You awake?”

“Yeah,” Bitty said, pushing himself into a sitting position. His voice sounded like he had been swallowing razor blades, all torn up and gravely. “Lord, what time is it?”

“About 12:30. I didn’t want to wake you.”

“Oh, I’m sleeping my whole Cancun trip away.” Bitty turned on the lamp beside him and could see that Jack’s face was already ruddy from the sun. “Where did you go this morning?”

“The Mayan ruins. It was really interesting, but no one else is a history geek so I just went on my own. Took some good pictures. Shitty and Larissa are out swimming with dolphins somewhere, and the rest of them went ziplining.”

“That sounds fun.” Bitty sighed. “I would’ve gone to the ruins with you.”

“I wasn’t sure how much you would be up to.”

“I’m not sure either. I don’t feel sick anymore, but my head feels like it’s filled with cotton and I stink something awful. I should probably shower, see if that makes me feel more human.”

“Have you eaten yet?”

“No, I just got up.”

“Go shower then. I’ll order us room service.”

Bitty was too drowsy to argue, grabbing an outfit from his suitcase before stumbling into the bathroom. He didn’t want to spend his last day in Cancun in the hotel, but he knew he wasn’t ready to face the sun yet. That shower was one of the best hotel showers Bitty had ever experienced. Or at least it felt that way to his hungover brain. He spent several minutes sitting on the tile floor of the stall, hot water falling over his shoulders and swirling around the drain. He wished this room had a proper tub, as standing was completely undesirable at the moment. He scrubbed at his skin until it was pink and clean. His head felt clearer, and he was finally starting to feel hungry as he turned off the water, stepping out to dry himself off. After combing his hair and dressing, he went to rejoin Jack in the room.

Jack had drawn the curtains aside and was sitting outside on the balcony patio. Bitty didn’t know how long he had showered for, but the food had already arrived.

“Is this alright?” Jack asked as Bitty stepped out onto the patio, the stone flooring warm under his bare feet. “I kind of just…ordered a bit of everything.”

“It’s perfect, Jack. Thank you.”

Jack poured Bitty a cup of coffee while Bitty started on a muffin and some scrambled eggs. The ocean view from their balcony was slightly obstructed by some hotels in front of them, but the beach was still visible from where they were sitting. Bitty could still hear the waves, smell the salt. Every breath of fresh air and bite of food revived him a little more.

“Feeling better?” Jack asked.

“Yes, thank you. You’re so sweet, taking care of me like this.”

Jack turned a bit pinker underneath his sunburn, but still managed to tease a smile. “You think I’m sweet, eh?”

“You _are _sweet. I’m not keeping you from anything, am I?”

“No, not at all. The ruins were the main thing I wanted to do. Was there anything you wanted to do today?”

“I might like to go shopping,” Bitty mused, picking at the eggs on his plate. “And go to the beach. I don’t always like to go to those tourist spots, you know? I’d rather see the place I’m in, not what they’ve designed for me to see.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean.”

“You can join me…if you’d like. And if you don’t have any other plans,” Bitty stammered. “I mean, it would be nice to spend some more time with you while we’re here.”

“I would like that.”

Jack smiled shyly at Bitty and Bitty hid a blush behind his coffee. They ate in silence for a couple minutes before Bitty sighed.

“I’m sorry about last night, Jack.”

“Sorry?” Jack’s brow furrowed. “What for?”

“That it was fun until it wasn’t, and you ended up having to, well, rescue me a little. I don’t drink much, ever, and when I do drink it’s usually only a drink or two. I haven’t drunk like that since college, and my body just wasn’t used to it and things got a little out of control.”

“Bits, we were all drinking and having fun, it’s alright.”

“Right, well no one else had to deal with drama because they were too drunk to tell a jerk to buzz off,” Bitty said. “Maybe I shouldn’t have worn those shorts, either. I just bought them, you know, and I didn’t realize I’d have to keep tugging them down all night ‘cause they were riding up my thighs. I guess I’ll just wear ‘em around the house—”

“Wait, wait, Bittle,” Jack interrupted. “Are you hearing yourself right now?”

“What?”

“None of this is your fault. There’s nothing you could have or should have done differently. That guy was just a dick and wanted to take advantage of you. If anything, I should’ve gotten there quicker. I should’ve been the one dancing with you. I wanted to, and I didn’t.”

“Jack,” Bitty said, but he didn’t really know what else to say after that. Jack wanted to dance? With him?

“I was the one who invited you on this trip in the first place and things just keep going wrong. First the hotel room, and then last night, and I had wanted this to—”

“Jack, if it’s not my fault then it’s not your fault, either. Sometimes things just happen.”

“I guess so.” Jack crossed his arms, leaned back in his seat, and looked out over the balcony.

“I meant to ask, where did you sleep last night? Were they able to find you an extra bed?”

“Huh? Oh, no, I, uh, slept on the floor.”

“Jack! Why on earth did you do that?”

“I didn’t want to share a bed with you while you were unconscious, and I couldn’t make sure if you’d be okay with it. But I didn’t want to leave you since you’d been sick. It’s not a big deal, I found some extra blankets and pillows and just camped out where I could see you.”

“Oh, honey.” Bitty reached across the table and put a hand on Jack’s arm. “You didn’t have to do that. That bed is huge. It would’ve easily fit the two of us!”

“Not if you weren’t okay with it. I mean, especially after what happened.”

“I understand, and again, you really are the sweetest man I think I’ve ever met. But you don’t have to sleep on the floor tonight, okay?”

“Okay.” Jack took a hold of Bitty’s hand, turning his palm up and playing with his fingers while Bitty finished his breakfast. “No one’s ever called me sweet before.”

“Not to your face, maybe.”

“And no one has ever called me ‘honey,’ either,” Jack smirked.

“If you don’t like it, I’ll stop.”

“Now, I didn’t say that, did I?”

When they were finished eating, they walked together to the market area, where the streets were lined with shops and stalls, mostly with goofy souvenirs, but with the occasional decent find. Jack was a good sport, carrying things around for Bitty until he decided what he wanted to purchase, then haggling prices down for him. Bitty found some handmade pottery for his parents that he was pretty sure he could fit back into his luggage. He managed to get Jack in a sombrero long enough to take a picture, though neither of them actually considered buying it. They enjoyed some grilled corn from a street vendor while they walked around the market.

Afterwards, they dropped their things back off at the hotel room and changed into their swimsuits for the short walk to the beach. They were able to borrow beach towels from the hotel, and thankfully Bitty had remembered to pack his own sunscreen. Jack had to reapply twice.

“You’re gonna get burnt to a crisp out here,” Bitty laughed as Jack rubbed more sunscreen onto his face, neck, and shoulders. Bitty had gone swimming for a little while, but Jack had just been laying on the towel, reading a book and baking under the sun.

“I’m trying not to,” Jack said. “Would you get my back?”

Lord, Bitty thought he’d never ask. Despite his pale skin, Jack looked great in his swim trunks. All broad shoulders and that deep V-line below his abs. Bitty was trying to not be obvious about letting his hands linger over the muscles in his back, on the base of his spine, but at some point, Jack did start flexing. Bitty laughed, smacking him lightly on the shoulder.

When Bitty turned around so Jack could return the favor, he felt a little self-conscious. He knew he was in good shape, and he took care of himself, he was just so much smaller than Jack. Then Jack’s large hands were squeezing his traps, kneading down his back and wrapping around his ribcage. Bitty could melt under those hands forever.

“You have freckles,” Jack said, tracing his finger over an imaginary Connect the Dots on his shoulder.

“That always happens when I get too much sun,” Bitty said, leaning into Jack’s touch. “They disappear in the winter and I get white as a sheet.”

“That’s a shame,” Jack said, giving his shoulder one last squeeze before he removed his hands.

Soon the rest of the crew slowly started to show up on the beach. Most of them had varying degrees of sun exposure from the day, the back of Will’s ears and neck looked particularly painful. Derek was forcing him to keep his shirt on at the beach so he wouldn’t “become more like his lobster brethren.”

“Not sure if that’s a Maine joke or a redhead joke,” Will said, narrowing his eyes.

“Because it’s you, Poindexter? It’s both.”

Adam, Justin, Jack, and Shitty started a game of volleyball while Larissa showed Bitty pictures of the dolphins.

“How cute!” Bitty said, looking at a photo of her with her arms wrapped around a smiling dolphin. “I wish I could’ve joined y’all this morning. I feel bad I’ve been a little MIA today.”

“Don’t even worry about it, dude,” Larissa said, sliding her sunglasses up on top of her head. “We just wanted to make sure that you took it easy.”

“Yeah, I’ve been fine. I was such a mess last night.”

“But you’re okay now?”

“I’m okay. Thanks for asking.”

Larissa tipped her head onto Bitty’s shoulder, and Bitty rested his head on top of hers.

“Guys can be the honest to god _worst_,” she said. “I’m sorry you had to deal with that fuckwit last night.”

“I know you girls get it so much worse every day,” Bitty said. “Even just at work. I know how many people have propositioned me to join the Mile-High Club with them, so I can only imagine the garbage you have to deal with.”

“It’s not a contest, Bits. It’s all bad.”

“You’re right.” Bitty rested his chin thoughtfully in the palm of his hand. “At least Jack was there. He has just been so kind to me all day.”

“You don’t say.”

Bitty wasn’t sure what her tone of voice meant, but they both stopped a moment to watch as Jack started taking the volleyball game way too seriously. Meanwhile, Shitty was just flat on his back in the sand, laughing about something Justin had said. It was practically just Jack and Adam playing one on one, shouting friendly jibes at each other as the ball flew back and forth. Bitty started to laugh, and Jack turned when he heard his voice, the goofiest smile Bitty had ever seen adorning his face. Unfortunately, Adam chose that moment to spike the ball over the net and claim his victory.

“Dammit, Birkholtz!” Jack yelled. “Foul!”

“Getting distracted isn’t a foul, bruh, it’s just DUMB.”

“Shitty was telling me the other day that he hasn’t seen Jack like this in a really long time,” Larissa said, adjusting her sunglasses back over her eyes. “All carefree and shit. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him this way.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I mean, he’s had girlfriends and boyfriends in the past, but none of them were able to get him out of his shell like this.”

Bitty stared for a moment, stumped by several odd insinuations in that statement, until one in particular jumped out at him. “Wait, boyfriends?”

“Yeah, the last guy he was seeing was a real piece of work. Shitty and I were relieved when that ended.”

“Jack dates boys?”

“You didn’t know?” Bitty couldn’t see her eyes roll behind her dark glasses, but he could hear it in her voice. “Of course you wouldn’t. Why would Jack even try to give you a clue?”

“Clue about what?”

“Please understand I did not intend to out him just now,” Larissa said, placing a hand on his arm. “Jack is very much out and proud. He had a bi pride flag pin on the lapel of his uniform for the entirety of last June, you just weren’t working with us yet.”

“Oh.” Bitty felt panic rise in his throat. He had no idea how to process this information. He had only recently been able to acknowledge his crush on Jack but had been successfully tamping it down by constantly reminding himself that there was no chance of Jack returning his affections. Jack was his coworker. Jack wasn’t flirting; he was only being nice. To stop projecting his feelings onto other people.

Larissa seemed to sense his anxiety and took his hand in hers.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything. I try and stay out of people’s business, especially my coworkers, but I really thought…I didn’t realize you guys hadn’t quite gotten there yet.”

“Is it that obvious I like him?” Bitty asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

“I wouldn’t say that.”

“Lord, I’m such a cliché. A flight attendant falling for a pilot!”

“Hey, I take offense,” Larissa laughed, bumping him in the shoulder. “I’m part of that cliché, too.”


	3. "I think you’re like. Very cute. And stuff.”

After the sunset the group made respective plans before parting again. Justin and Adam had been asked out by the girls they had met the night before. Will, Derek, and Chris had found some cheesy theme restaurant/dance club they were dying to go to. Jack and Bitty were invited to join Shitty and Larissa for dinner at a nice restaurant “with the grownups.”

“Double date!” Shitty said with a fist bump after Jack agreed to join. Larissa jabbed him in the ribs. “Ow! What the fuck, Lards?”

Bitty could hear Larissa sharply whispering to Shitty as she dragged him back towards their hotel room. After a few seconds, Shitty shouted, “Wait, seriously!”

“Haha, classic Shits,” Jack said, a little uncomfortably as he unlocked their hotel room door.

“Do you even know his real first name?” Bitty asked, smoothly altering the course of conversation.

“Sure, I do. I’ve just, uh, been sworn to secrecy.”

“You don’t know it, do you?”

“Not a clue. Something tells me I knew it once and forgot, but now it’s been so long I’m too afraid to ask.”

Bitty laughed, and Jack laughed with him, relieving some of the tension in the room. They both took turns rinsing the beach off themselves in the shower and getting ready for the evening. Bitty reveled in feeling validated once again for always packing at least one button-up shirt for occasions such as this. When he exited the bathroom, he saw that Jack had also changed into a pair of dark jeans and tight, white t-shirt, an open button-up shirt layered over top. Jack gave Bitty a shy smile as he rolled his sleeves up his forearms.

“Could you help me with the other one?” Jack asked, holding out his right arm.

“Of course.” Bitty crossed over to him, slowly folding the sleeve back to match the other, careful not to let his fingers remain too long on Jack’s skin. “You clean up well, Mr. Zimmermann.”

“Back at you, Bittle. Though, to be fair, I’ve never seen you not looking nice.”

“Well, shucks, you’ll make a boy blush.”

“Besides, you do see me in uniform all the time.”

“That’s different,” Bitty said, patting down the sleeve as he finished. “You know it’s different.”

“Yeah. I know.”

They took a taxi to the restaurant with Shitty and Larissa. Shitty had reserved a table, and it was dark by the time they got there, but it seemed like the dinner rush was only beginning. They were seated on a patio in a garden with sculptures, fountains, and trees that were all covered in twinkling lights. A live band played in the corner. Bitty had been to a lot of interesting places on his travels through work, but this was undoubtedly one of the most magical.

Dinner was extravagant and delicious. It was the sort of slow dining experience that allowed for a lot of conversation and laughs in between courses. They shared bites of all their dishes with each other. While they were waiting on dessert and orders of Mayan coffee, several couples had moved to the area in front of the band, swaying together to a mix of traditional music and instrumental versions of romantic ballads.

“Let’s dance, Lards!” Shitty said, standing up from the table. Larissa grabbed his sleeve and pulled him back down.

“Can’t,” she said. “Too full. You’re gonna have to roll me back to the hotel.”

“We’ve still got dessert coming!”

“Yeah, I mean, I’m still gonna eat it. But please don’t make me get out of this chair.”

Bitty laughed, watching the other couples dance, a blend of old and young, under the ambient light of the garden. Then Jack rested his hand on Bitty’s arm.

“Bits,” he said, eyes reflecting back the twinkling lights around them and lips in a soft smile, “wanna dance?”

“Yes,” Bitty breathed. “Yes, I do.”

Jack lead him over to the band, pulling him in by the waist and easily falling into step with the rhythm of the song. Bitty laced his fingers behind Jack’s neck and swayed with him. After a few moments of this, moving together and sharing gentle smiles, Jack pulled Bitty in closer, and Bitty rested his cheek against Jack’s chest. He could hear Jack’s heart beating as rapidly as his own, loud and strong. Jack leaned down and spoke, close enough his lips occasionally brushed against the shell of Bitty’s ear.

“I’ve been told I can be emotionally distant,” he said. “But I want to be close to you. You are the warmest, kindest person I’ve ever met. I really like you. You make me want to be better.”

Bitty’s breath stopped short. “Oh, Jack…”

“I’ve been trying to flirt with you, but Shits said I should try a more direct approach because I am, quote, ‘awkward’.” Jack even lifted a hand to do the air quote, and a laugh escaped through the tightness in Bitty’s chest. “Also, I think you’re like. Very cute. And stuff.”

“And stuff, huh?” Now Bitty couldn’t stop laughing. Couldn’t control the overwhelming mix of emotions that were suddenly bubbling up. Jack was smiling, if a little nervously, and Bitty realized that Jack hadn’t exactly asked a question, but maybe that he should still give him an answer.

“Jack Zimmermann, you are the silliest, sweetest, most ridiculous man on God’s green earth, and I like you so, _so_ much.”

Bitty ran his hands up the back of Jack’s ears, thumbs against his jaw as he brought Jack down for a kiss. Jack met his lips and Bitty sighed. His mouth was just as warm and soft as it looked, with only a slight scratch of stubble. Then Jack tilted his head, deepening the kiss and parting his lips and Bitty’s knees nearly gave out. But Jack had him, one arm wrapped around his waist and the other now cupping the back of his head.

At the same time, they both seemed to remember they were very much in public and reluctantly drew away from each other. No one around them was paying any mind, they were hardly the only couple necking on the dance floor. However, Bitty was afraid to even look in the direction of their table because he was almost certain he had heard a loud whoop from Shitty when they started kissing.

“Also,” Bitty added, when they had returned to dancing, Jack resting his chin against Bitty’s temple. “I think you’re like. Stupid handsome. And stuff.”

Jack laughed, stooping down to kiss Bitty again.

Larissa and Shitty kindly withheld any comments when they rejoined them for dessert, but Shitty looked like he was holding back happy tears the entire time. Bitty also caught Larissa fist bumping Jack under the table. Jack hooked his ankle around Bitty’s, keeping contact with him for the rest of the meal.

Afterwards, Larissa and Shitty said they were thinking about going somewhere else for drinks and asked if they wanted to join.

“I think we might want to head back to the hotel,” Jack said, placing an arm over Bitty’s shoulders. Bitty’s neck erupted in goosebumps and his face grew warm at the seemingly innocent suggestion.

“Yes,” Bitty agreed. “We fly out in the morning. Probably not a bad idea to turn in early.”

“Riiiiight,” Shitty waggled his eyebrows. “Hope you have a very restful night, you crazy kids.”

“Leave ‘em alone, Shits,” Larissa said with a fond eye-roll. But when she went to hug Bitty goodnight, she whispered in his ear, “I want deets tomorrow, bro!”

“Obviously,” Bitty whispered back. 

The taxi ride back to the hotel was quiet. Jack sat close enough to Bitty in the backseat that their thighs touched, their hands laced together resting on top of them. Jack rubbed his thumb across the back of Bitty’s knuckles and that alone had Bitty feeling like his skin was on fire. They held hands when they exited the cab, all the way through the lobby and to the elevator. When the elevator closed, Jack cleared his throat.

“I need you to know that I’m not expecting anything from you by bringing this up, but it’s important to me that you know I get tested regularly for STIs, that sort of thing. And, uh, my results were all negative. I haven’t been with anyone since the last time I was tested. So.”

“Oh,” Bitty said. “Well, okay.”

Jack winced, his embarrassed self-awareness kicking in, and damned if Bitty didn’t find that endearing as all get out.

“Again,” Jack said, “I’m not expecting—”

“No, it’s alright. It is important. And same here, all negative, good to go.”

“Okay. Good.” Jack shifted his weight on his feet. “I know you’ve mentioned before that you don’t hook up with guys over layovers, and I respect that. So, if you—”

“Jack. I don’t hook up with strangers over layovers. You’re not a stranger to me, honey.”

They stood in uncomfortable silence until the doors slid open. 

“And I’m not expecting anything either,” Bitty said, as they walked towards their hotel room. “But I might like a bit of somethin’.” 

Jack smiled to himself, unlocking the door with his keycard. “Something, eh?”

“Jack Laurent Zimmermann, don’t tease. Didn’t your mama ever tell you—mmm!”

Jack pulled Bitty in through the doorway and pressed him against the nearest wall, closing his mouth over Bitty’s, firmly but sweetly. Bitty immediately parted his lips, placing hands on Jack’s chest and lifting his chin to meet each kiss. Jack’s hands were on the side of his face, one of his knees pressing between Bitty’s legs as he kept him pinned to the wall.

“Jack,” Bitty moaned. 

“I want you, too,” Jack mumbled against Bitty’s neck. “I want you so…God, Bits, you drive me crazy.”

“I do?”

“Why do you think I was always hiding in the cockpit when we started working together?”

“We’ve been over this,” Bitty gasped as Jack took one of his earlobes between his teeth. “I thought you didn’t like me!”

“I liked you too much. It overwhelmed me. I didn’t know what to do around you. I thought I’d scare you off.”

“Hey,” Bitty said, pulling Jack’s attention back so they were looking at each other, eye to eye. He kissed the bridge of Jack’s nose. “We got here eventually, didn’t we?”

“Yeah, I guess we did.”

Jack leaned in to kiss him one more time, a hot, consuming kiss, before he backed away.

“Can I make a weird request?” Jack asked.

“Sure, honey,” Bitty said, winded. “What is it?”

“Can we get ready for bed?”

Bitty blinked, expecting almost anything but that. “Oh, well, of course we can.”

“I’m not saying I’m ready to fall asleep,” Jack said, a glint in his eye. “Mostly I just want to brush my teeth, I have coffee breath. And I wanna get out of these clothes. I was sweating in them earlier from sitting outside.”

“Okay, that’s a good idea.”

Bitty followed Jack’s lead as he walked over to his suitcase, slowly removing each item and folding them away, until they were both left in only boxers. Then they stood next to each other over the bathroom sink, brushing their teeth and sharing toothpaste-filled smiles at their reflections in the mirror. Somehow this, brushing their teeth in their underwear, was more intimate than anything else they’d shared so far. 

Jack took his medication while Bitty washed his face. Bitty convinced Jack to try his toner and moisturizer, gently patting his fingertips across Jack’s face. (“Honestly, Jack, you fly planes for a living! You’ve gotta know how drying that is on your skin. I’ll bring facemasks for us next time.”) And then Jack was flipping off the lights as Bitty turned down the duvet.

They both crawled beneath the sheets at the same time, the room illuminated by the blue light coming in from the window, surprisingly bright from the busy streets below. Bitty turned to face Jack as he rested his head on the pillow, and Jack looked back at him. The light highlighted the sharp planes of his cheekbones and jawline, his blue eyes darkened to almost violet. And then Jack was silently reaching for him, brushing the back of his knuckles against Bitty’s cheek and down to his jaw. Bitty’s eyes closed at the touch, tilting his face towards Jack’s hand.

Bitty’s eyes opened when the blankets rustled, and the mattress shifted as Jack propped himself up on his elbow. Jack leaned over Bitty, just tracing the lines of his face with his fingertips, over his ear, across his chin, down his neck to the dip below his throat, and across his clavicle. Bitty licked his lips, reaching up to push Jack’s hair off his forehead and out of his face.

“You’re beautiful,” Jack whispered.

“So are you.”

“Can I kiss you?”

“Yes. Yes, please. Kiss me.”

Jack pressed a kiss so gentle, so reverent, against Bitty’s lips that Bitty nearly teared up. Jack’s hand wandered down Bitty’s chest, over his abs and across his ribs before resting on his waist. Bitty’s skin jumped under the touch, his breath shortening as Jack kissed him again and again and again. Bitty grabbed at Jack’s shoulders, hauling Jack’s body further over his until Jack was hovering above him, Bitty inserting one of his legs between Jack’s. Their pace was slow, almost lazy, and it was sweet, and it was nice, but Bitty was tired of being kept on edge.

“Come closer to me, sugar,” Bitty whispered against Jack’s ear. “I wanna feel you.”

“Yeah?”

“I wanna feel how much you want me,” Bitty said, face growing hot, grateful for the dark of the room. “Show me, honey. Can you show me?”

“Bits,” Jack groaned. And finally, finally, Jack lowered his weight onto Bitty. He buried his face against Bitty’s neck, sucking kisses against his flushed skin as he pressed their hips together. Bitty opened his mouth in a broken gasp. Jack matched his gasp with a moan. They were both hard, Bitty almost painfully so, still trapped beneath his boxers and now between their bodies. Then Jack started to move.

“Aaahh, yes! _Jack_.”

Bitty slid his fingers into the short hair at the back of Jack’s head, gripping and tugging slightly as Jack continued to bite and kiss his neck, while his other arm wrapped around Jack’s broad shoulders. Jack slipped his hand up the back of Bitty’s thigh, lifting it up and over so it rested on top of Jack’s hip. Bitty’s toes curled and he cried out when Jack thrust against him, the new position allowing their clothed erections to rub directly against each other. 

“Can I touch you?” Bitty asked between moans. “Beneath the underwear, I mean.”

“Shit,” Jack said, getting off Bitty and sitting back on his heels, “take it off. Take it all off, it’s just in the way.”

Bitty surged up to his knees, pulling Jack into an open-mouthed kiss that was mostly teeth and tongue, as his hands blindly tugged down the back of Jack’s boxers. Bitty sighed when he got both hands on Jack’s perfect ass. It was even firmer and larger than Bitty’s wildest dreams. Jack chuckled into Bitty’s mouth as he helped him remove the underwear the rest of the way. 

“I should’ve known you only liked me for my ass,” Jack teased.

“Why can’t I like both you and your ass?”

“It’s okay. I like yours, too.”

“That so?” Bitty pushed Jack away from him and Jack tumbled onto his back, laying on top of the duvet completely naked, and lord was that a sight. “You been makin’ eyes at me, Mr. Zimmermann?”

“I was really hoping you’d notice, Bittle.”

Bitty sat up on his knees, quickly removing his boxer briefs so he could get back to touching Jack. He tossed them off the side of the bed, then crawled over Jack, dropping down to kiss his abdomen. Bitty continued kissing up the centerline of Jack’s body, between his ribs, his sternum, the hollow of his throat, his Adam’s apple. Jack’s hands were all over him, big and warm, gliding down his back, squeezing his ass, raising the hairs along the back of his neck and arms. 

“I don’t have any lube,” Jack said suddenly, “or condoms. I wasn’t – I didn’t think we would. Fuck.”

“I don’t either,” Bitty said, dropping his forehead to Jack’s shoulder. “That’s okay. We’ll manage.”

“I think I saw some in the hotel sundries shop. I could go down and get some real quick.”

“Jack!” Bitty sat back, straddling Jack’s thick thighs. “Then they’ll know what we’re up to!”

“Bits.” Jack raised an eyebrow. “It’s a vacation resort. I’m sure they’re used to seeing people get up to all kinds of things.”

“And you’d have to leave me all alone up here, waiting for you.”

“You could come down with me.”

“Well then they would definitely know!”

“What’s so bad about that?” Jack took one of Bitty’s hands to pull him back down, grinning up at him. “Maybe I want people to be jealous I’ve got you all to myself now.”

“All to yourself,” Bitty repeated softly. Jack immediately blanched, backtracking.

“I mean. I’m sorry. We didn’t exactly talk about being exclusive. I do want that, maybe eventually, if you also want that. Sorry, we can talk about this later—”

“Jack,” Bitty said, placing a finger over his lips. “I want that, too. I wanna be all yours, honey. And you’ll be mine.”

“Yeah,” Jack sighed.

“And I’m not in a rush to get everything all over with in one night,” Bitty continued, readjusting his position so he was mostly sitting up again, his hands resting on Jack’s chest. “Let’s take it slow. I liked what we’ve been doin’, haven’t you?”

Bitty pressed their hips together again, to prove his point. Jack just bit his lip, nodding emphatically in answer to Bitty’s question. The sensation was about a hundred times more overwhelming without the barrier of clothing or having the blanket cover their bodies, leaving it all to the imagination. With the light coming in through the window, and with Bitty’s eyes adjusted to the room, he could see everything. Jack’s back arched off the bed as he ground down on him, his brow furrowing when Bitty started to rub the pads of his thumbs over his nipples. Bitty was glad that in this position he was in control, because he couldn’t have lasted long otherwise. 

“I want,” Jack panted, “wanna touch.”

“Yes! Do it. I’m close, baby.”

“Me too.” Jack closed his hand around both of their dicks, stroking them both in tandem with Bitty’s thrusts. 

“Fuck!” Bitty sobbed. “Ah, fuck, Jack, don’t stop. Please. Don’t stop.”

Bitty threw his head back as Jack picked up the pace, his other hand holding Bitty’s hip, urging him on. Bitty’s skin was damp with sweat, his hair sticking to the back of his neck and forehead. He had no idea what was coming out of his mouth anymore, just a string of noise and nonsense and pleading.

It was Jack who came first with a shout, Bitty following soon after, still riding Jack through the aftershocks. Eventually, Bitty collapsed beside Jack. He used Jack’s chest as a pillow, Jack wrapping his arms around them, both matching their breath as they came down. Jack was kissing the top of his head, Bitty trailing his finger through the dark hair on Jack’s chest, when Jack started chuckling.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you swear like that,” he said.

“You’ve gotta earn it,” Bitty replied, his speech still slightly slurred. 

“We made a mess.”

“We did.”

“I don’t feel like moving yet.”

“Me neither.”

Bitty fought the urge to close his eyes and drift off. He wanted to live in this moment with Jack forever. Jack snuggled closer to him as their skin cooled off, and Bitty dragged the blanket back over them. They had yet to right their position, both their heads on the opposite end of the pillows. But it seemed neither of them were in a rush to fall asleep. They still had all night.

Bitty lifted his face to look at Jack’s, press a kiss to his chin. Jack was already looking down at him, smiling, eyes unfocused.

“What are you thinking about?” Bitty asked, yawning.

“I’m just happy.”

“Me too, sweetheart.”

“Bitty, I want to be clear. I want to keep seeing you, I want to date you.”

“So serious, Captain Zimmermann!”

“Just Jack,” he said, lips brushing against Bitty’s forehead. “Just Jack when I’m with you.”

“Jack.” Bitty smiled, always loving the feel of his name on his tongue. “I wanna date you, too.”

** Six Months Later **

Bitty closed the buttons on his uniform suit jacket as he reviewed the pre-flight checklist. There were still a few spare minutes before they would welcome the passengers aboard. Chris joined Bitty at the first class cabin station, carrying a box of snacks to restock the compartments.

“How is the new kid doing?” Bitty asked.

“Tony? He’s good! Enthusiastic. Asks a lot of questions. A _lot _of questions.”

“I’m proud of you, Chris, training our new crew members,” Bitty said, assisting Chris with the snacks and digging around for the bags of coffee grounds. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they start letting you lead your own crew soon!”

“I don’t know,” Chris said, shrugging. “It’s getting hard being away from my girlfriend so much. Caitlyn just got offered a great job in San Jose. I’m thinking about going back home to be with her more.”

“Well, if you do, we’ll miss you. But I’d understand.”

“You and Jack would have to promise to come visit!”

“Of course we would!”

“Besides, we’d see each other again at the wedding.”

Bitty frowned. “Chris, we already went to Shitty and Larissa’s wedding? That’s why I’m lead today, remember? They’re on their honeymoon?”

“Not their wedding,” Chris laughed, shaking his head. “Will and Derek!”

“What!” Bitty nearly dropped the hot pot of coffee he was holding. “Who proposed? When?”

“During their layover in Rome yesterday! It was so cute, they were both planning to do it at the same time, but the other one didn’t know. Adam filmed the whole thing, Derek put it on Facebook this morning.”

“I couldn’t even believe it when they started dating.” Bitty shook his head. “Now they’re gonna go and get married?”

“Yeah, it didn’t surprise me that they started dating. You hadn’t been around their constant bickering enough to realize it was only a mask for years of unresolved sexual tension. I’m only surprised that they’re getting married before you and Jack.”

“Chris!”

“Just saying!”

“Mr. Bitty Eric sir?” Tony said, his head popping around the corner. “I finished all the seat checks and restocked all the drinks and everything Mr. Chris said.”

“Thank you, Tony. And you can just call me Bitty.”

“Bitty,” he repeated with a nod. “Am I gonna get to be on your crew all the time?”

“Well, I won’t always be the lead, that’s Larissa. I’m sure you’ll still work with me sometimes, but Jack and I are planning a short vacation once Larissa’s back.”

“That’s our pilot, right?” Tony asked. “Are you guys, like, in love?”

“Yes,” Bitty smiled. “Yes, we are.”

“Is everyone who works for Samwell dating each other? Who am I gonna date? Oh, can I have some coffee?”

“I’m sure we’ll find you somebody,” Chris said, throwing Bitty an amused look. “C’mon, Tony. I’ll show you where we stow the emergency gear on this craft and explain why we never _ever_ drink the potable water service coffee.”

Bitty finished organizing the food compartments as Chris lead Tony to the back of the plane. Bitty was startled when he turned back around to see a tall, dark haired pilot who was not his boyfriend.

“You,” the man said, pointing a finger at Bitty. “You are Bittle?”

Bitty nodded, trying the place the man’s thick accent. Something European, for sure.

“I eat your pie this morning in lounge. Is best pie I ever have. _Ever_.” He placed both hands on Bitty’s shoulders. “We are best friends now.”

“Bits,” Jack said, appearing behind him, “I see you’ve met Alexei. He’s taking on a couple of Shitty’s shifts.”

“Shitty is not getting shifts back,” Alexei said. “Not when I get pie. I’m here for good. Is nice to meet you, B, Jack say very nice things about you.”

With that, Alexei excused himself to the cockpit. Bitty chuckled a confused laugh and Jack only shrugged.

“You been sayin’ sweet things about me when I’m not around?” Bitty said, tugging Jack in by the lapels of his jacket. Jack went to him, pulling him into an embrace.

“Always, Bits.”

“You gonna tell me what you said?”

“Maybe.” Jack kissed the top of his head. Bitty raised his chin expectantly and Jack obliged him with a kiss on the lips. “Or maybe I’ll save it for later when we’re alone.”

“You tease. You’re horrible. Just awful. An absolute menace.”

“I know. I’ll make it up to you.”

They stood like that for a moment, Bitty just enjoying his presence, the smell of his cologne, the warmth of his hands on his back. Jack had planned the vacation they were going on the following week to Montreal. Part of the visit was an opportunity for Bitty to finally meet Jack’s parents. They had Skyped and spoken many times, but their schedules hadn’t allowed for them to meet in person. Bitty’s parents lived near Atlanta, so Jack had met them months before. And even with Bitty’s mother’s constant smothering and questions, and his father’s weird ‘tests’ to see exactly what kind of man Jack was, Jack had still managed to pass with flying colors. Bitty hadn’t gotten along with his parents that well in years, but they loved Jack. Almost as much as Bitty did.

Well, maybe not quite that much. Bitty did love him. A lot. So much sometimes that it felt too big for his body, that he might just fall apart for the sheer love of this man who was finally, slowly warming up to the idea of eating sugar on at least a semi-regular basis.

As it turned out, Jack liked maple sugar-crusted apple pie the best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading, and thank you again to my wonderful betas and [rub-a-dubb](https://rub-a-dubb.tumblr.com/) for the magnificent art (I told y'all it was good). Thank you also to our mods, loveyoutoobits and jckzimmermanns, for organizing the challenge! 
> 
> Also, I did like...a bajillion hours of research for this AU to try and capture what flight attendant life looks like (though I'm sure some things still got fictionalized in the name of plot lol) but I would like to thank the vlog [Fly With Stella](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMZrx8wtMlG9rwyugDgRr5g) who, among others, inspired many of the moments and knowledge for this fic! Her videos are actually a lot of fun, so if you were into this AU, you would probably love to go down the rabbit hole of her vlogs!! LOL
> 
> And, last but certainly not least, thanks to YOU! I have received so much overwhelming support from the omgcp fandom in the last year or so since I've been here. Every reader, commenter, kudos-giver, message, anon ask, tumblr like or reblog, gave me the motivation to write this fic for you and I am so, so grateful for all the kindness I've received. Thank you thank you thank you <3
> 
> Alright, enough sap! Time for self-promo!
> 
> If you enjoyed this fic and want to scream it from the roof tops (or scream into the void of the internet) you may share the official tumblr post [here,](https://omgcpbigbang2019.tumblr.com/post/188987505832/flight-check-fic-by-edgarallanrose-ao3-art-by) or retweet it [here!](https://twitter.com/Edgarallanrose1/status/1193918130596261888?s=20)
> 
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